Staff Descriptions

Gulthias Staff

Rare (requires attunement)
Made from the branch of a Gulthias tree, a Gulthias staff is a spongy, black length of wood. Its evil makes beasts visibly uncomfortable while within 30 feet of it. The staff has 10 charges and regains 1d6 + 4 of its expended charges daily at dusk.
If the staff is broken or burned to ashes, its wood releases a terrible, inhuman scream that can be heard out to a range of 300 feet. All blights that can hear the scream immediately wither and die.

Vampiric Strike: The staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff. On a hit, it deals damage as a normal quarterstaff, and you can expend 1 charge to regain a number of hit points equal to the damage dealt by the weapon. Each time a charge is spent, red blood oozes from the staff's pores, and you must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw or be afflicted with short-term madness.

Blight Bane: While you are attuned to the staff, blights and other evil plant creatures don't regard you as hostile unless you harm them.

Spider Staff

Rare (requires attunement)
The top of this black, adamantine staff is shaped like a spider. The staff weighs 6 pounds. You must be attuned to the staff to gain its benefits and cast its spells.
The staff can be wielded as a quarterstaff. It deals 1d6 extra poison damage on a hit when used to make a weapon attack.
The staff has 10 charges, which are used to fuel the spells within it. With the staff in hand, you can use your action to cast one of the following spells from the staff if the spell is on your class’s spell list: spider climb (1 charge) or web (2 charges, spell save DC 15). No components are required.
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges each day at dusk. If you expend the staff’s last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff crumbles to dust and is destroyed.

Staff of Adornment

Common
If you place an object weighing no more than 1 pound (such as a shard of crystal, an egg, or a stone) above the tip of the staff while holding it, the object floats an inch from the staff's tip and remains there until it is removed or until the staff is no longer in your possession. The staff can have up to three such objects floating over its tip at any given time. While holding the staff, you can make one or more of the objects slowly spin or turn in place.

Staff of Birdcalls

Common
This wooden staff is decorated with bird carvings. It has 10 charges. While holding it, you can use an action to expend 1 charge from the staff and cause it to create one of t h e following sounds out to a range of 60 feet: a finch's chirp, a raven's caw, a duck's quack, a chicken's cluck, a goose's honk, a loon's call, a turkey's gobble, a seagull's cry, an owl's hoot, or an eagle's shriek.
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff explodes in a harmless cloud of bird feathers and is lost forever.

Staff of Charming

Rare (requires attunement, bard, cleric, druid, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
While holding this staff, you can use an action to expend 1 of its 10 charges to cast charm person, command, or comprehend languages from it using your spell save DC. The staff can also be used as a magic quarterstaff.
If you are holding the staff and fail a saving throw against an enchantment spell that targets only you, you can turn your failed save into a successful one. You can't use this property of the staff again until the next dawn. If you succeed on a save against an enchantment spell that targets only you, with or without the staff's intervention, you can use your reaction to expend 1 charge from the staff and turn the spell back on its caster as if you had cast the spell.
The staff regains 1d8 + 2 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff becomes a nonmagical quarterstaff.

Staff of Defense

Rare (requires attunement)
This slender, hollow staff is made of glass yet is as strong as oak. It weighs 3 pounds. You must be attuned to the staff to gain its benefits and cast its spells.
While holding the staff, you have a +1 bonus to your Armor Class.
The staff has 10 charges, which are used to fuel the spells within it. With the staff in hand, you can use your action to cast one of the following spells from the staff if the spell is on your class’s spell list: mage armor (1 charge) or shield (2 charges). No components are required.
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges each day at dawn. If you expend the staff’s last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff shatters and is destroyed.

Staff of Fire

Very Rare (requires attunement, druid, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
You have resistance to fire damage while you hold this staff.
The staff has 10 charges. While holding it, you can use an action to expend 1 or more of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it, using your spell save DC: burning hands (1 charge), fireball (3 charges), or wall of fire (4 charges).
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff blackens, crumbles into cinders, and is destroyed.

Staff of Flowers

This wooden staff has 10 charges. While holding it, you can use an action to expend 1 charge from the staff and cause a flower to sprout from a patch of earth or soil within 5 feet of you, or from the staff itself. Unless you choose a specific kind of flower, the staff creates a mild-scented daisy. The flower is harmless and nonmagical, and it grows or withers as a normal flower would.
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff turns into flower petals and is lost forever.

Staff of Ice

Very Rare (requires attunement, druid, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
You have resistance to cold damage while you hold this staff.
The staff has 10 charges. While holding it, you can use an action to expend 1 or more of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it, using your spell save DC: cone of cold (5 charges), fog cloud (1 charge), ice storm (4 charges), or wall of ice (4 charges).
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff turns to water and is destroyed.

Staff of Healing

Rare (requires attunement, bard, cleric, or druid)
This staff has 10 charges. While holding it, you can use an action to expend 1 or more of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it, using your spell save DC and spellcasting ability modifier: cure wounds (1 charge per spell level, up to 4th), lesser restoration (2 charges), or mass cure wounds (5 charges).
The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff vanishes in a flash of light, lost forever.

Staff of Power

Very Rare (requires attunement, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. While holding it, you gain a +2 bonus to Armor Class, saving throws, and spell attack rolls.
The staff has 20 charges for the following properties. The staff regains 2d8 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff retains its +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls but loses all other properties. On a 20, the staff regains 1d8 + 2 charges.

Power Strike: When you hit with a melee attack using the staff, you can expend 1 charge to deal an extra 1d6 force damage to the target.

Retributive Strike: You can use an action to break the staff over your knee or against a solid surface, performing a retributive strike. The staff is destroyed and releases its remaining magic in an explosion that expands to fill a 30-foot-radius sphere centered on it.

You have a 50 percent chance to instantly travel to a random plane of existence, avoiding the explosion. If you fail to avoid the effect, you take force damage equal to 16 x the number of charges in the staff. Every other creature in the area must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes an amount of damage based on how far away it is from the point of origin, as shown in the following table. On a successful save, a creature takes half as much damage.

Distance from Origin

Damage

10 ft. away or closer

8 x the number of charges in the staff

11 to 20 ft. away

6 x the number of charges in the staff

21 to 30 ft. away

4 x the number of charges in the staff

Staff of Striking

Very Rare (requires attunement)
This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it.
The staff has 10 charges. When you hit with a melee attack using it, you can expend up to 3 of its charges. For each charge you expend, the target takes an extra 1d6 force damage. The staff regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff becomes a nonmagical quarterstaff.

Staff of Swarming Insects

Rare (requires attunement, bard, cleric, druid, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
This staff has 10 charges and regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, a swarm of insects consumes and destroys the staff, then disperses.

Spells: While holding the staff, you can use an action to expend some of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it, using your spell save DC: giant insect (4 charges) or insect plague (5 charges).

Insect Cloud: While holding the staff, you can use an action and expend 1 charge to cause a swarm of harmless flying insects to spread out in a 30-foot radius from you. The insects remain for 10 minutes, making the area heavily obscured for creatures other than you. The swarm moves with you, remaining centered on you. A wind of at least 10 miles per hour disperses the swarm and ends the effect.

Staff of the Adder

Uncommon (requires attunement, cleric, druid, or warlock)
You can use a bonus action to speak this staff's command word and make the head of the staff become that of an animate poisonous snake for 1 minute. By using another bonus action to speak the command word again, you return the staff to its normal inanimate form.
You can make a melee attack using the snake head, which has a reach of 5 feet. Your proficiency bonus applies to the attack roll. On a hit, the target takes 1d6 piercing damage and must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or take 3d6 poison damage.
The snake head can be attacked while it is animate. It has an Armor Class of 15 and 20 hit points. If the head drops to 0 hit points, the staff is destroyed. As long as it's not destroyed, the staff regains all lost hit points when it reverts to its inanimate form.

Staff of the Magi

Legendary (requires attunement, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. While you hold it, you gain a +2 bonus to spell attack rolls.
The staff has 50 charges for the following properties. It regains 4d6 + 2 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 20, the staff regains 1d12 + 1 charges.

Spell Absorption: While holding the staff, you have advantage on saving throws against spells. In addition, you can use your reaction when another creature casts a spell that targets only you. If you do, the staff absorbs the magic of the spell, canceling its effect and gaining a number of charges equal to the absorbed spell's level. However, if doing so brings the staff's total number of charges above 50, the staff explodes as if you activated its retributive strike (see below).

Retributive Strike: You can use an action to break the staff over your knee or against a solid surface, performing a retributive strike. The staff is destroyed and releases its remaining magic in an explosion that expands to fill a 30-foot-radius sphere centered on it.

You have a 50 percent chance to instantly travel to a random plane of existence, avoiding the explosion. If you fail to avoid the effect, you take force damage equal to 16 x the number of charges in the staff. Every other creature in the area must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes an amount of damage based on how far away it is from the point of origin, as shown in the following table. On a successful save, a creature takes half as much damage.

Distance from Origin

Damage

10 ft. away or closer

8 x the number of charges in the staff

11 to 20 ft. away

6 x the number of charges in the staff

21 to 30 ft. away

4 x the number of charges in the staff

Staff of the Forgotten One

Artifact (requires attunement by a sorcerer, warlock, or wizard)
This crooked staff is carved from bone and topped with the skull of a forgotten archmage whom Acererak destroyed long ago. Etched into the skull's forehead is Accrerak's rune, which is known on many worlds as a sign of death.

Beneficial Properties: While the staff is on your person, you gain the following benefits:

You can't be blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, petrified, or stunned.

Undead with a challenge rating of 2 or lower will neither threaten nor attack you unless you harm them.

You can wield the staff as a +3 quarterstaff that deals an extra 10 (3d6) necrotic damage on a hit.

Invoke Curse. The Staff of the Forgotten One has 7 charges and regains 1d4 + 3 expended charges daily at dawn. While holding the staff, you can use an action to expend 1 charge and target one creature you can see within 60 feet of you. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw (using your spell save DC) or be cursed. While cursed in this way, the target can' t regain hit points and has vulnerability to necrotic damage. A greater restoration, remove curse, or similar spell ends the curse on the target.

The Forgotten One: The bodiless life force of a dead archmage empowers the staff and is imprisoned within it. The rune carved into the staff's skull protects Acererak from this spirit's vengeance. Each time a creature other than Acererak expends any of the staff's charges, there is a 50 percent chance that the life force tries to possess the staff wielder. The wielder must succeed on a DC 20 Charisma saving throw or be possessed, becoming an NPC under the DM's control. If the intruding life force is targeted by magic such as a dispel evil and good spell, it becomes trapped in the staff once more. Once it takes control of another creature, the insane spirit of the dead archmage attempts to destroy the staff.

Destroying the Staff: A creature in possession of the staff can use an action to break it over one knee or a solid surface. The staff is destroyed and releases its remaining magic in an explosion that expands to fill a 30-foot-radius sphere centered on it. Each creature in the area must make a DC 18 Dexterity saving throw, taking 132 (24d10) force damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. When the staff is destroyed, the life force of the Forgotten One is released to the afterlife. Where it goes is anyone's guess. Casting the staff into a sphere of annihilation destroys both the staff and the life force trapped within it. The staff doesn't explode if destroyed in this manner, but its destruction causes the sphere to be destroyed as well.

Staff of the Python

Uncommon (requires attunement, cleric, druid, or warlock)
You can use an action to speak this staff's command word and throw the staff on the ground within 10 feet of you. The staff becomes a giant constrictor snake under your control and acts on its own initiative count. By using a bonus action to speak the command word again, you return the staff to its normal form in a space formerly occupied by the snake.
On your turn, you can mentally command the snake if it is within 60 feet of you and you aren't incapacitated. You decide what action the snake takes and where it moves during its next turn, or you can issue it a general command, such as to attack your enemies or guard a location.
If the snake is reduced to 0 hit points, it dies and reverts to its staff form. The staff then shatters and is destroyed. If the snake reverts to staff form before losing all its hit points, it regains all of them.

Staff of the Woodlands

Rare (requires attunement, druid)
This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. While holding it, you have a +2 bonus to spell attack rolls.
The staff has 10 charges for the following properties. It regains 1d6 + 4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff loses its properties and becomes a nonmagical quarterstaff.

You can also use an action to cast the pass without trace spell from the staff without using any charges.

Tree Form: You can use an action to plant one end of the staff in fertile earth and expend 1 charge to transform the staff into a healthy tree. The tree is 60 feet tall and has a 5-foot-diameter trunk, and its branches at the top spread out in a 20-foot radius.

The tree appears ordinary but radiates a faint aura of transmutation magic if targeted by detect magic. While touching the tree and using another action to speak its command word, you return the staff to its normal form. Any creature in the tree falls when it reverts to a staff.

Staff of Thunder and Lightning

Very Rare (requires attunement)
This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. It also has the following additional properties. When one of these properties is used, it can't be used again until the next dawn.

Lightning: When you hit with a melee attack using the staff, you can cause the target to take an extra 2d6 lightning damage.

Thunder: When you hit with a melee attack using the staff, you can cause the staff to emit a crack of thunder, audible out to 300 feet. The target you hit must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or become stunned until the end of your next turn.

Lightning Strike: You can use an action to cause a bolt of lightning to leap from the staff's tip in a line that is 5 feet wide and 120 feet long. Each creature in that line must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw, taking 9d6 lightning damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Thunderclap: You can use an action to cause the staff to issue a deafening thunderclap, audible out to 600 feet. Each creature within 60 feet of you (not including you) must make a DC 17 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes 2d6 thunder damage and becomes deafened for 1 minute. On a successful save, a creature takes half damage and isn't deafened.

Thunder and Lightning: You can use an action to use the Lightning Strike and Thunderclap properties at the same time. Doing so doesn't expend the daily use of those properties, only the use of this one.

Staff of Withering

Rare (requires attunement, cleric, druid, or warlock)
This staff has 3 charges and regains 1d3 expended charges daily at dawn.
The staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff. On a hit, it deals damage as a normal quarterstaff, and you can expend 1 charge to deal an extra 2d10 necrotic damage to the target. In addition, the target must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or have disadvantage for 1 hour on any ability check or saving throw that uses Strength or Constitution.